Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “fang” come from?

Fang comes from Old English fōn, from Proto-Germanic fangą and fanhaną, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European peh₂ḱ-, meaning to seize or strike.

fang (English): a long, pointed canine tooth used for biting and...

Definitions

  1. a long, pointed canine tooth used for biting and...

Ancestry of “fang”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishfangtoothA beryciform fish of the monotypic family...
2Middle Englishfangtoothfang, canine
3Old Englishfengtōþcanine tooth
4Old Englishfōnto take, grasp, seize, catch, capture, make...
5Old Norsefangato fetch, capture
6Middle Low Germanvangencaptive; to catch
7Proto-Germanicfangōnąto catch, capture
8Proto-Germanic-ōnąCreates denominative verbs from nouns; Creates...
9Proto-Indo-European-eh₂yétiCreates iterative/ frequentative/ intensive...
10Proto-Indo-European-yétiCreates intransitive, often deponent,...
11Proto-Indo-Europeanyé-—
12Chichewaiyehe, she

Words derived from “fang”

  • fanged
  • defang
  • fangless
  • fanglike
  • infang
  • fangy
  • outfangthief
  • fire-fanged
  • fangsmith
  • unfang
  • yesterfang
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